1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to solar systems employing reflectors for reflecting radiant energy onto one or more collectors. More particularly, this invention relates to an improvement in the solar system having the reflectors and collector in which the expense of installation is reduced without sacrificing precision and efficiency.
2. Background of the Invention
The prior art has seen the development of a wide variety of systems for producing useful work. One of the systems that has long been used but has been recently reactivated with a special emphasis is the use of solar energy. The systems for using the solar energy are referred to as solar systems. These systems have taken a wide variety of forms ranging from the photovoltaic cells that convert the radiant energy directly into electrical current, such as used in space probes, space vehicles and the like; to the more mundane systems converting the energy to heat for heating a fluid for use in generation of power. Regardless of which system is employed, it is generally conceded to be beneficial to employ a concentrating principle in which the sun's radiant energy from a much larger area than the collector, per se, is directed, or focused, onto the collector that uses the radiant energy.
In a typical installation at the surface of the earth, a collector may be mounted on a tower or the like and reflectors spaced thereabout for directing radiant energy onto the collector. In order to maximize the radiant energy directed onto the collector, a sensor has been employed intermediate the collector and the reflector so as to detect when the sun rays depart from the most direct and concentrated reflection of the radiant energy onto the collector. Typically in such an installation, the reflector was mounted on one support structure, such as a post that was firmly anchored in the surface of the earth or the like. In order to resist receiving minor surface movements, the sensor then had to be mounted on a similarly rigidly anchored support structure. Since the anchors had to go down to subsurface layers to resist the surface movements that might be spurious or different one from the other, the second support structure was expensive.
Accordingly it can be seen that the prior art was not totally satisfactory in providing an economical combination of reflector, collector, sensor and their respective supports.